Yuzu Kosho is a hot and citrusy fermented Japanese condiment made with fresh yuzu citrus zest, green chilli peppers, and salt. After years of exploring Asian food, I didn’t think I would get surprised by anything so much, but I did!
A few months ago my friend Neville sent me a bag of green yuzu fruits right from the tree. He recommended to make the yuzu kosho and even provided the recipe. Traditionally, yuzu kosho made from the zest of unripe yuzu fruits and green togarashi chilli peppers. To be honest, it was a hard task to find green chilli in winter (and lockdown, ha) but I did it, I found Jalapeno and regular green chillies.
For yuzu zesting I used my Microplane grater, it cost as much as a plane, but I really like this cool kitchen tool, Microplane makes the work much easier. For chopping the chillies I used a small food processor. I beg you, please don’t touch your eyes and nose when working chillies and after, even if you using seeded chillies.
The whole house was filled with magical yuzu and green chilli aromas. Two of my fave ingredients combined together. Aromatic flavoursome yuzu and grassy, slightly bitter green chilli. Salt and fermentation do their job, after three months of fermenting the culinary masterpiece was born.
What to do with yuzu kosho. Yuzu kosho will be your secret ingredient that will add the special flavour to your dish that is complex, with musky, spicy and herbaceous notes. As the most products of fermentation yuzu kosho will add the umami and depth of flavour to your dish.
You will enjoy this gentle and even delicate heat from chilli that works without overpowering the dish. Use a teaspoon (or a coffee spoon) of yuzu kosho for finishing your steak; or take the taste of your chicken breast or prawns to the next level marinating it in yuzu kosho; add a little to miso ramen right before serving; or make funky dressing for a salad or poke bowl; mix a little in mayo or aioli and use as dipping salad or sauce for a sandwich; add the zing to your avocado toast. I can go on for a very long time, but I know you can come up with many combinations using your imagination.
Thank you NZ Yuzu for these amazing organic yuzu fruits and the yuzu kosho recipe.
Yuzu Kosho. Spicy Funky Japanese Condiment.
Course: condimentCuisine: Japanese, AsianDifficulty: Easy20-40
servings30
minutesYuzu Kosho is a hot and citrusy fermented Japanese condiment made with fresh yuzu citrus zest, green chilli peppers, and salt.
Use a teaspoon (or a coffee spoon) of yuzu kosho for finishing your steak; or take the taste of your chicken breast or prawns to the next level marinating it in yuzu kosho; add a little to miso ramen right before serving; or make funky dressing for a salad or poke bowl; mix a little in mayo or aioli and use as dipping salad or sauce for a sandwich; add the zing to your avocado toast. I can go on for a very long time, but I know you can come up with many combinations using your imagination.
Ingredients
100g green chilli (use seeded green chillies if you prefer less heat)
100-70g yuzu zest
25g organic salt
Directions
- Chop green chillies in a food processor. Grate the yuzu zest using Microplane or grater. Mix chilli, yuzu zest and salt in a mortar using a pestle. Transfer the aromatic mix to a sterilised jar and left in a fridge for a minimum of 3 months. Enjoy!
